Universal Basic Income

Labor activist AndyStern has been a proponent of the Universal Basic Income and its potential to lift people out of poverty. He says UBI could provide a safety net for displaced workers in the not-too-distant future. Stern says that UBI has support from some conservatives and libertarians due to the potential to eliminate a lot of bureaucracy and human service programs and simply allow people to spend their “assistance” as they see fit.

“It can be imagined as social security for all, it’s a very old idea that Thomas Paine proposed and Richard Nixon introduced as a bill and is now becoming an important idea as a more efficient way to end poverty as well as deal with the upcoming technological disruption.”

UBI would provide everyone from 18-64 years of age with a monthly check of $1000. Stern says it’s intended to eliminate many of the existing welfare programs by supplementing income rather than being a substitute for work. “In a world of ever changing work everyone needs some kind of safety net that allows them to take risks, raise families, go to different jobs and a Universal Basic Income would be that safety net.”

Stern said that in the late 1960s UBI was tested in 5 US cities including Denver. Right now, Justin Trudeau, the Canadian PM is looking to introduce the UBI in certain provinces.